Complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) integrated circuit (IC) construction has become very popular for use in linear signal amplifier applications. Such amplifiers can be incorporated into IC chips which also contain conventional CMOS digital circuits commonly in the Form of large scale integrated circuit (LSIC) structures. While many CMOS amplifier circuit configurations have been developed along the lines of bipolar circuits, the actual implementations often produce problems. In general, while the bipolar device circuits have been developed over many years and, as evolved, work very well, a CMOS equivalent may operate somewhat differently and a direct equivalent may not perform in a completely satisfactory manner.
In particular, bipolar amplifier design frequency compensation has been developed to a relatively fine art and very satisfactory circuits are in use. However, if a similar frequency compensation scheme is transformed to a CMOS circuit, the resultant performance is often not fully equivalent and the overall performance may not be acceptable.
Reference is made to a copending patent application Ser. No. 364,548 filed Apr. 1, 1982, by James B. Wieser. This application is titled CMOS VOLTAGE REFERENCE and is incorporated herein by reference. It shows a CMOS circuit which develops a temperature stable voltage and includes a frequency compensated linear high gain amplifier.